The Truth About Celia

So, at the con I was talking with some fancy people (not to name drop, but Maureen McHugh. And Kristin. And some others.), and they were talking about ridiculous things people do to in their attempts to get published--cover letters in crayons is the only one I can remember, but there were a couple along those lines.

"One of my friends," I said, "Slept with an editor."

You know who you are. They were terribly disappointed when it turned out to have just been the platonic con-bed-sharing type of sleep.

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it was freezing cold there. Not outside, where coldness makes sense, but in the lobby!

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Lee Thomas knows me as "Ken's friend." "Do i know you from the strange horizon's workshop? You're Ken's friend, aren't you?" There are definitely worse ways to be known.

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I saw David and rudi and Dan and another David and Kristin and Alan and Leah and Bear and Jaime and Mris and Jodi and Rae and Heather and Holly and um...oh, about 90 other people. Oh, TH people, I saw Melissa there. And Jayme Blaskche, but I don't think he remembered that he knows me. Oh, and some people from up here.

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The new Fantasy issue is *gorgeous.* I admired the layout job of it frequently, but forgot to buy a copy. The graphic designer in me sometimes gets loose and runs around critiquing layouts.

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New books I don't have, but should: The new Nina Hoffman. The new Sharon Shinn. um. The new Kate Elliott.

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New Books I shouldn't have, but do: Myrren's Gift (the y book from back in the day. A Princess of Roumania. (both free in the bag) Bittersweet Creek (which I've apparently just *thought* I had a copy of for the past x years.) Mothers and Other monsters (technically, I don't have this one, as I mailed it to my mother. It's a little joke, you know. She loves our little jokes.) Un Dun Lun (ARC donated to my mother by someone who has never even met her) And a Tom Holt omnibus I didn't have.

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Two Tom Holt books you should read:
Expecting Someone Taller
Who's Afraid of Beowulf
(the omnibus version that was in the dealer's room)

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I was harrassed and threatened by boys until I admitted I would send my stories to more places, so within a week I should have something at least at On Spec, if not at somewhere else.

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I need food now.

behind me, at take off today.
'are we up in the sky?'
'no, not yet.'
'are we down on the ground?'

(the same small girl stared suspiciously at me when I said I wasn't getting off the plane in Dallas, but going all the way to Boston.)

In boston on thursday, as I got ready to fly out, there was a small boy telling his mother, quite seriously, "Did you know I'm actually made of springs?" It was followed by a demonstration, as he threw himself off the chair. "See how I bounce?"

I will be gone thursday night, friday, saturday, and sunday through the evening. You would think this would be something I could pack for without stuffing 14 shirts into my suitcase. Okay, I exaggerate...a little. I have two pairs of pants, 4 or 5 shirts, three pairs of socks and underwear and pajamas. I need to print out my hotel reservation, so I know where to tell the shuttle to take me once I get to austin. Anyone else got a 3:20 flight from boston to austin? Anyone? Anyone?

My suitcase is packed, my clothes for tomorrow are picked out, the carry-on is ready as well, though I'll undoubtedly throw extra books/etc into it before I leave the house tomorrow. Oh, and my toothbrush. I have my fall coat to come with me--I don't think I'll need it while I'm gone, but I don't want to come back to boston less dressed than the weather calls for. My mother says it's going to snow in central PA this weekend. I don't remember if I have to check my bag or not, but I probably will.

I can't find my contacts, or the extra rechargable battery. This is kinda annoying. Though I can grab another new contact, if necessary, and likewise purchase a new battery. It's actually my headphones I worry about more than the battery.

I feel highly virtuous. I've now written checks for all my bills, and even factored in housing at world fantasy. I'll still have some money left over. less than I feel safe having, but hey, that's the way the world works, lately. But I've been bad and bought my books lately, so that's out of the way, and I don't have any new music obsessions, so that's also not a factor. I'm planing to continue with being good and not eating out until WFC. And I'm not planning to go crazy there either, though I probably will. Then I've just got buying my WorldCon membership, getting my eyes checked, and registering for the GREs (maybe--I'm torn again.) left to do in the next few months. And I transferred a credit card balance, so that'll save me money in the long run. :) I don't think I'll get to go visit my brother while he's in Ireland, cause I'm not going to have the money, esp if I really do want to move to Boston in the next year.

I could send Firing to Scifi.com, but I want someone else to read it before I send it--I revised it, and think it helped the pacing and all, and kept it from slowing down fatally towards the end, but I'm not positive. So my mom's reading it now. On the one hand, I've gotten only personal rejections of it, so it can't have sucked beyond belief. On the other hand, they were still rejections. On the other hand, it's not the type of story they do print. On the other hand, she had bells.